1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a printing system provided with a processing unit that prints acquired image data on a print medium in a printing portion, and more specifically, relates to technology in which print processing in the printing portion is administered while eliminating inappropriate operation by an inexperienced operator.
2. Description of the Related Art
Technology similar to the printing system configured in the above manner is disclosed in JP 2004-192219A (Claim 1, paragraphs [0020] to [0026], FIG. 2). That is, in printer driver software of a print apparatus, a printer driver settings screen is displayed by selecting a menu provided by an application program that performs printing, and it is possible to judge whether each settings item related to the print operation is in a locked state or an unlocked state via this settings screen. Also, the setting of the locked state and the unlocked state is performed by an administrator, and when changing the content of an item in the locked state, it is necessary to enter a correct password.
Using a digital photograph print apparatus installed in a photo lab as an example, in photograph print processing that forms a shot image on print paper based on image data acquired from each frame of photographic film or image data acquired from media such as flash memory, prior to printing, the image data to be printed is selected, and pre-judging work in which order data such as print size and the number of prints are set is performed. Before beginning this pre-judging work, it is conceivable to authenticate the operator by asking for password input. However, a conventional print processing program that realizes print processing is executed after performing operator authentication by asking for password input and logging on, and when this print processing program is executed, various information can be acquired in the print processing. Accordingly, with a print processing unit essentially configured from a personal computer (referred to below as simply a processing unit), via the pre-judging work, after setting the image data to be printed and setting the order data (number of copies to print and print size), a logged-on state is maintained, and the program for print processing is continuously executed in this processing unit. Accordingly, in a conventional processing unit, in which a logged-on state is maintained while print processing is continued, the processing unit is in a state in which desired operating input is permitted, arid as a result a problem can occur in which erroneous information is set by an erroneous operation.
This type of erroneous operation often occurs under conditions in which the processing unit is operated by a plurality of operators, i.e., under conditions in which a photographic printing system that has been installed in a photo lab is operated by a plurality of inexperienced operators.